Decision details

Under the Health and Social Care Act (2012) local authorities have the responsibility to protect the health of their resident population. Part of this Health Protection function is Infection Prevention and Control (IPC).
Existing IPC services are in place in Doncaster to cover service users under the direct care of Doncaster and Bassetlaw NHS Foundation Trust (DBHFT) and Rotherham, Doncaster and South Humberside NHS Foundation Trust (RDASH). However there is a gap in the provision of IPC specialist support in the community including support for care homes and domiciliary care providers.

Direct contract was awarded to Rotherham Doncaster and South Humber NHS Foundation Trust (RDASH) for the provision of community infection prevention and control service. The contract value was £139,150 for the period from May 2016 to March 2018.

Other options considered included:
- Spot purchase the relevant elements of IPC such as post infection
reviews, and trainings. This option was not feasible as there was
no local capacity available to carry out this function on ad hoc basis.
- Purchase support from neighbouring local authority: This option
was rejected, as systems were different, and staff from
neighbouring local authorities may not have local knowledge.
- Outsource service to external provider: The option was discounted
due to small contract value to attract potential providers, lack of
local knowledge of the service needs, and time factor, which was
considered to take longer to have a service in place.
- Direct contract award to RDASH. This was the preferred option.